Dear Friends,

Autumn is a time of year I find my eyes drawn to the glory of God’s creation. It could be the beauty of the moon at night, the leaves on the trees turning orange and red, or the shortening of daylight, so much of nature that is changing points to our eternal God and Creator of life.
In this month of October, we turn to God with gratitude for the gift of human life, the crowning of God’s creation.
Yet we cannot take the beauty of creation and human life for granted. We are living at an important time when it is vital for our future to advocate for the protection of human life at all of life’s stages. We must lift our voices and affirm that human life is a gift and that all human life should be protected from conception until natural death. As Pope Benedict XVI once wrote: “Each of us is a result of a thought of God. Each of us is willed. Each of us is loved. Each of us is necessary.” With patience and perseverance, we must help others, especially our young people, understand the value of each human life.
In addition to our work in assisting expectant mothers and their children, new initiatives are needed to respond to those who advocate for the introduction of “assisted suicide” in our state. I am following the Church’s response in the United Kingdom as legislators there prepare to debate legalizing assisted suicide. Cardinal Vincent Nichols of Westminster warned of a “slippery slope” and that a legalized “right to die” then will become a “duty to die.” Information about how we can object to physician assisted suicide will be shared in the coming weeks; please support efforts to say “no” to such practices.
Please commit yourself to regular prayer asking God for an increase in respect and protection of human life. Read our newsletter and share it with other people. The more we are informed about the threats to human life, the better we can advocate for the protection each person needs and deserves. As you learn more about our efforts to promote the Gospel of Life, may the Holy Spirit refresh our hearts and help us continue this important work.

Thank you and God bless you,

Bishop Michael McGovern